Rubella becomes a nightmare for many pregnant women

Rubella has plagued thousands of pregnant women and claimed lives of a great deal of unborn babies since this summer.

A mother forced to give up her child because of rubella

An outbreak of the virus started in northern Vietnam in the middle of the year. The disease has forced thousands of pregnant women to decide whether or not to abort their child. However, even with new rubella diagnosis methods, the number of pregnant women who opt to take the test is still relatively small.
Doctors and difficult decisions
Associate Professor Le Anh Tuan, who is also Deputy Director of the Central Obstetrics Hospital, shared, “I’ve never seen such a great number of pregnant women undergoing abortions. Since January 2011, over 2,000 pregnant women have been hospitalised for rubella. Over half of them have been compelled to have abortions, due to possible effects of the disease on their babies.”
According to Tuan, at one time, the hospital diagnosed about 200 pregnant women per week with rubella. But many of these diagnoses were too late. The tests are able to confirm whether or not the patient is infected, but cannot pinpoint the time of infection.
It is also difficult for doctors to give advice on the effects the disease might have on the unborn child. These women are given advice based on past international research, he said.
Tuan added that doctors often advise infected mothers to undergo abortions if they are less than 12 weeks pregnant.
“In many cases, we just give them advice without suggesting abortion, but the mothers sometimes decide to abort on their own because of possible deformities,” he said.
Tuan said that a woman in Hanoi who got pregnant, after several in-vitro fertilisations, started showing hives in the 12th week of pregnancy. She was advised to go to Singapore for a test. A short time later, under the advice of doctors, she came back to the hospital for an abortion.
Despite prevention efforts, the Central Obstetrics Hospital recorded 20 newborn babies with the virus, four of whom died just after birth.
Since late June, the hospital has started using new testing methods with a 95% accuracy rate, but which cost VND1.5 million (USD72.7).
To date, the hospital has used these new testing methods on about 40 expectant mothers. They should be carried out between five and seven weeks of infection, although many expectant mothers find it difficult to define the moment of infection. Others are hesitant to take the test because they are close to the time of maternal leave.

England riots: pressure to scrap police cuts as Birmingham mourns its dead

England riots: Tariq Jahan, father of one of the three people killed in Birmingham, speaks to the media. Photograph: Carl de Souza/AFP

David Cameron is facing growing cabinet pressure to rethink the coalition's policing cuts in the wake of the deaths of three young Birmingham men, who were hit by a car during violent disturbances in the city.

As the Police Federation warned of a "catastrophe" if similar riots erupted after the cuts were introduced, a senior government source said the Home Office would be advised to take a fresh look at its plans to cut £2bn from police funding over the next few years. "The optics have changed," the source told the Guardian.

Cameron said the cuts would not lead to a "reduction in visible policing". He is expected to announce some emergency funding when he addresses the Commons on Thursday, to cover the extra costs of policing this week's riots, as well as the possibility of insurance claims against police on the grounds they provided no protection to businesses in a riot.

But there are fears in Whitehall that the Home Office plan to make savings in the police service could leave an "exposed flank" in any future riots. London's mayor Boris Johnson warned the government against cutting numbers. "The case was always pretty frail and it's been substantially weakened. This is not the time to think about making substantial cuts in police numbers," he told BBC Radio 4's Today programme.

The pressure on Cameron followed a day of rising tensions in Birmingham as community leaders and police appealed for calm following the death of Haroon Jahan, 21, and brothers Shazad Ali, 30 and Abdul Musavir, 31. The three were part of a group of around 80 guarding a petrol station and shops from looters in Winson Green when they were victims of a hit-and-run in the early hours of Wednesday. A murder inquiry has been launched, and a 32-year-old man is being questioned.
Amid fears the deaths could spark inter-communal reprisals, the distraught father of Jahan made an emotional appeal to the community, revealing he had desperately tried to resuscitate his youngest son.
Holding a photograph of Haroon, Tariq Jahan, said he was nearby and rushed to help. "I ran towards the commotion and the first guy I found was someone I didn't know. I started giving him CPR until someone pointed out that the guy behind me was my son on the floor," he said.
"So I started CPR on my own son, my face was covered in blood, my hands were covered in blood. Why, why?
"He was trying to help his community and he has been killed." Describing his son, a mechanic and keen boxer, as "a very well-liked kid", he said: "I can't describe to anybody what it feels like to lose a son. He was the youngest of three, and anything I ever wanted done, I would always ask Haroon to sort it out for me.
"A day from now, maybe two days from now, the whole world will forget and nobody will care."
In a message to the local community, he implored: "Today we stand here to plead with all the youth to remain calm, for our communities to stand united.
"This is not a race issue. The family has received messages of sympathy and support from all parts of society."
Visibly emotional, Jahan added: "I lost my son. Blacks, Asians, whites – we all live in the same community. Why do we have to kill one another? Why are we doing this? Step forward if you want to lose your sons. Otherwise, calm down and go home – please." Haroon, Shazad, and Abdul Musavir who ran a local carwash, were standing near the petrol station on Dudley Road when they were hit. Shazad, who had a degree in business management, had married in March and his new wife is pregnant. The three were said to be protecting property after a Jet petrol station had been robbed the previous day.
One witness said four carloads of young African-Caribbean men had cruised down Dudley Road and suggested there had been no doubt what they were planning to loot.
The Bishop of Aston, the Rt Rev Andrew Watson, warned of events "potentially having an ugly race dimension", following a heated meeting between local residents at a mosque. Anger was palpable. "Of course it was deliberate. No way was it an accident," said one eyewitness. "The driver went on to the pavement and rammed them. He knew what he was doing.
"If the police don't sort this one out quickly, there will be race riots," added the man, who declined to be named, but who has given a statement to police.
Mohammed Chowdhri, a family friend, said: "I have known Haroon since he was a baby, we are all absolutely devastated. He was fed up with the rioters and the looters and he was determined that they would not destroy our community."
As shoes taken off by respectful mourners formed a growing heap at a local mosque, community leaders moved rapidly to spread Jahan's message and add words of their own.
"These were bright young guys we've lost," said one man. "They knew the meaning of work and got themselves decent jobs. The brothers had a carwash which was another business which might have been targeted, and Haroon worked as a mechanic in a garage. "They were well-known round here.
The bishop said that extended families were part of a very strong network in the community which added to the strength of feelings. Sobia Nazia, a cousin of the brothers, said: "They were brothers to everybody. They used to look out for everyone. They were heroes. I heard people describing them on Facebook as brothers to one and all."
She added: "We don't want anything more to happen – just the culprits brought to justice. We don't want other families to suffer. It's the youth. They have no knowledge, they have no jobs and they are bored."
Warnings of racial violence came in advance of parliament being recalled on Thursday and as Cameron announced contingency plans were in place to deploy water cannon at 24 hours notice if necessary as part of a police "fightback" to contain the rioting and looting that has swept England since Saturday.
On Wednesday night hundreds of police in riot gear were deployed to Eltham, south-east London, where men were on the street for a second night as self-appointed protectors of the community. Police briefly clashed on Eltham Hill with about 200 men, some chanting "EDL" [English Defence League], and bottles were thrown.
One local man, Jay Evans, told the Guardian there were a number of English Defence League members present "trying to jump on the bandwagon" but said they were "an extremely small minority".

Earlier, the home secretary Theresa May ordered chief constables to cancel "all police leave" to deal with the rioting crisis, saying "maximising the police presence on the street must be a priority", in affected areas.

An emergency reserve of riot police has been put on standby as senior police tackle the unprecedented challenges of disorder, which has spread from London, to cities including Birmingham, Manchester, Salford, Nottingham, Bristol and Liverpool.

Courts were sitting throughout the night, as the first of those to be prosecuted in connection with looting and violent disorder appeared, including a primary school assistant, and an 11-year-old boy.
Visiting Birmingham on Wednesday, Cameron described the deaths in the city as "a truly dreadful incident", adding that the police were "working night and day to get to the bottom of what happened and bring the perpetrators to justice".
Earlier, as he left a meeting of the government's emergency committee Cobra, he said every contingency was being looked at and "nothing is off the table" in providing police with the resources needed to tackle the disturbance.
Police would get whatever resources they needed, and legal backing for whatever tactics they needed to employ. "We needed a fightback and a fightback is under way."
The riots had shown "pockets of society" were not just broken "but frankly sick". He said the root cause was "mindless selfishness, and "complete lack of responsibility in our society."
"When we see children as young as 13, looting and laughing, when we see the disgusting sight of an injured young man with people pretending to help him while they are robbing him, it is clear that there are things that are badly wrong in our society." Cameron said he expected prison sentences for those convicted of violent disorder, and that detectives were going through CCTV. Looters would be tracked down "picture by picture" and he would not let "phoney concerns about human rights get in the way of the publication of these pictures".
In London, 820 people have now been arrested in connection with violence, disorder and looting – with 279 charged. In total across England there have been more than 1,300 arrested.
Six forces are now receiving reinforcements as part of the national mutual aid operation set up to deal with the scale of the looting.
London, Manchester, the West Midlands, Gloucestershire, Nottinghamshire and Avon and Somerset have all been sent officers. Sir Hugh Orde, the president of the Association of Chief Police Officers, said if other forces requested help they would be supported.
Orde, who has been having regular discussions with the prime minister and the home secretary at Cobra, said: "Clearly these are challenging times. We are in an unprecedented situation but we are determined to do our best to ensure that forces have adequate mutual aid for anyone who requests it."
A mobile reserve of police support units to provide a rapid response for forces, and made up of public order officers across the country, will be kept in one or two geographic locations to be called upon when needed.
While West Midlands police forensic teams prioritised the Winson Green incident, the force said that 11 other people were suspected of involvement.
The chief constable said: "Like everyone else in Birmingham, my concern now will be that that single incident doesn't lead to a much wider and more general level of distrust, and even worse, violence, between different communities."
On the forecourt of the garage where the three died, members of the local Muslim and Sikh community came together for prayers in a candlelit vigil. Among the 50 men stood Tariq Jahan. Many applauded his appeal for communal peace, and as prayers ended, one cried out: "united we stand, divided we fall".
On Wednesday night, police named the man found shot in his car in Croydon following rioting on Monday night as Trevor Ellis, 26. He suffered a gunshot wound to the head.

The shocking story of the newspaper crime reporter who knew too much

· Journalist kills himself as he is linked to four deaths
· Police suspicion raised by use of unattributable facts

Vlado Tanevski, 56, had been charged with two murders and suspected of up to two more when he killed himself Photographer: Eastway

When Vlado Taneski wrote about the serial killer stalking his hometown in Macedonia, his eye for detail was such that the story was soon riveting readers. The journalist's inside knowledge of the brutal murders of three elderly women in the tiny town of Kicevo ensured that newspaper editors gave his columns prominence.
Yesterday the 56-year-old father-of-two killed himself by dunking his head in a bucket of water in the toilet at a prison in the town of Tetovo, after it was revealed he had been charged with the murders he had written about.
"All these women were raped, molested and murdered in the most terrible way and we have very strong evidence that Taneski was responsible for all three," said police spokesman Ivo Kotevski speaking from the capital Skopje. "In the end there were many things that pointed to him as a suspect and led us to file charges against him for two of the murders," he added. "We were close to charging him with a third murder, and hoped he would give us details of a fourth woman who disappeared in 2003 - because we believe he was involved in that case, too."
Of all the things which gave Taneski away, police point to his in-depth coverage of a story which is being reported as one of the most bizarre events to have befallen the two-million strong mini-state.
The three women were aged between 65 and 56. Zivana Temelkoska, Ljubica Licoska, and Mitra Simjanoska were each beaten repeatedly and strangled with a phone cable. Temelkoska was murdered in May, Licoska in February last year and Simjanoska in 2005.
They shared a common background in being cleaners, a job which Taneski's deceased mother had held for years.
Each of the three bodies was discovered wrapped in plastic bags and dumped and discarded around Kicevo, a drab town southwest of Skopje with a population of fewer than 20,000. The fourth woman, aged 78, went missing in 2003, and her body has never been found.
It was the ostensibly mild-mannered journalist's intricate account of the murders which led to suspicion.
But what made it unmistakable was his inclusion of details police had chosen not to release. Unlike any of his journalist rivals, Taneski knew the type of phone chord the killer used as his "signature weapon" - reporting, without attribution, that the cord had been used to strangle as well as tie up the bodies of the women; and, even more brazenly, he speculated about the chronology of the murders.
"On May 18, just after the gruesome murder of Zivana Temelkoska, he called and pitched the story to us," said Goce Trpkovski, a reporter at the daily Nova Makedonija.
"He was very quietly spoken but also very persuasive. As a contributor we published his story as the main article on the crime pages the next day - under the headline 'A serial killer stalks Kicevo, too' - because the murders followed a series of killings in Ochrid, although they were nothing like this.
"To tell the truth, I didn't believe the story - almost nothing happens in Macedonia, and suddenly we have two serial killers stalking our tiny country in a matter of months."
What neither the staff at Utrinski Vesnik, another newspaper that he contributed to, or any of his many friends, could also believe, was how a man described as "unbelievably low-key and soft-natured" was capable of such crimes.
Yesterday, his estranged wife told Canal 5, a local TV station, that she had enjoyed "an ideal marriage" with Taneski for 31 years. "He was always quiet and gentle. The only time I ever saw him get aggressive was when we were living with his parents," she told the channel.
As police released more details yesterday, it did emerge there was also a darker side to Taneski's life. A large collection of pornographic videos and magazines was found in his summer house.
And, adding to the fact the victims were cleaners, as was Taneski's dead mother, police noted all three bore a striking resemblance to her. He is believed to have had a troubled relationship with his mother, one which worsened considerably after his father killed himself in 1990.
"There is obvious symbolism in the fact that his mother, like the victims, was a cleaner," said Antoni Novotni, a professor who heads the psychiatric clinic in Skopje. "This is pure speculation - as he was never my patient - but one explanation could be that he wanted to be caught by letting slip what he did in his articles," Novotni told the Guardian.
"Perhaps he saw it as a way of resolving his inner problems, and getting rid of the burden which came with killing these women."
Extract
From a piece by Vlado Taneski, published in Nova Makedonija on May 19 2008
The people of Kicevo live in fear after another butchered body has been found in the town. The corpse strongly resembles one discovered 20 kilometres outside Kicevo last year and there is a possibility that these monstrous murders are the work of a serial killer.
Both women were tortured and murdered in the same fashion, which rules out the possibility that this could have been done by two different people. The Ochrid serial killer murdered three people [in 2007] but his victims were all street-based money exchangers and his motive was to rob them.
The motive of the Kicevo monster remains unclear. Both women were friends and living in the same part of town. Police have a few suspects who they are interrogating.
The latest body was found in rubbish dump. It had been tied up with a piece of phone cable with which the woman had clearly been previously strangled

Belinda Stewart-Wilson — Will's Mum

"It's all in the boys' imaginations, they're so rude about her. She's not really a prostitute or a stripper, but in their heads she's all of those things"

Full name: Belinda Stewart-Wilson
DOB: April 16, 1971
Place of birth: London, England
Occupation: Actress

Her History in FHM's 100 Sexiest Women
2011 #64

Belinda Stewart-Wilson facts

• Belinda is best known for her role as Will's hot mum in E4's The Inbetweeners.
• She's also appeared in the likes of Look Around You, The Peter Serafinowicz Show and The Armstrong and Miller Show.
• She used to have to wear an eye-patch to straighten up a squint she had as a kid.
• For their next album Irish band Pugwash have written a song called 'Dear Belinda' for her upcoming 40th birthday.

 

Why we love Belinda Stewart-Wilson

Belinda Stewart-Wilson is probably a name you don’t know. Her best-known character’s name - Polly McKenzie – is still maybe a name you don’t know. You’ll know her (personally) as Will’s mum. Yup, his mum is the reason that you wish you lived next to Will and had to hitch a ride to school every day. Alongside Neil’s sister, she makes family characters fully worthwhile, and gives Jay endless ammunition of ‘your mum’ lines.
Belinda herself was not someone you’d have seen often at school – her dad was in the army and her family often moved to different military posts. Still, things were soon normal for the Londoner, as the family moved back to the capital when her dad became an Equerry to the Queen. What’s an Equerry? Well, Wikipedia pretty much says they are an attendant, but what they actually do we have no idea. Still, there’s a long list of previous equerries on Wiki too, including Belinda’s dad, so he was important. She even met the Queen a bunch of times, which gives her a touch of class added to her hotness.
Before she became the figure of every Inbetweener’s imagination (except Will), Belinda was forging her way in the likes of Holby City, and has recently been appearing in the ITV sci-fi show Primeval. She says comedy is more her thing though, and has also appeared in the likes of Broken News and The IT Crowd. Hot and funny, the perfect mum. As long as she’s not your mum.

Will's mum's hot stuff in the buff

Breast scene of the movie? ... Belinda Stewart Wilson

WILL'S mum would go down even more a storm with The Inbetweeners boys if this is how she greeted them.

But for those hoping this is a new still from the show's upcoming movie spin-off, you're in for disappointment.

Actress Belinda Stewart Wilson has stripped topless for new film drama All That Way For Love.

The star of the hit TV show - who plays Polly McKenzie - displays no signs of coyness as she gets down and dirty with an onscreen lover.

Romp ... Belinda Stewart Wilson and Andrew Simpson get to know each other

The movie tells the story of a young Irishman, Simon (Andrew Simpson), who travels across Africa to reach his girlfriend.

He ends up hitching a ride with warring European couple Kate, played by Belinda, and Casper (Derek De Lint).

During the journey, the idealistic lad romps with seductress Kate.

He'll be the envy of Simon, Jay and Neil for years to come...

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Scientists fear hydropower projects pose major environmental threat

Dozens of scientists have called for the suspension of the Dong Nai 6 and Dong Nai 6A hydropower projects due to their potentially negative impact on the environment.

Scientists underline the likely environmental impact due to the projects

The Vietnam Union of Science and Technology Associations (VUSTA), Cat Tien National Park’s management board and Vietnam River Network (VRN) co-organised a seminar in the southern province of Dong Nai to analyse an environmental impact assessment of the proposed projects.
Pros and cons
At the seminar, the project investor, the Duc Long Gia Lai Group Joint Stock Company, emphasised the importance of the hydropower plants in boosting the country’s power supply and mitigating the current power shortage.
The projects could supply sufficient power for the central highlands provinces of Dak Nong and Lam Dong, as well as the southern province of Binh Phuoc, contributing some VND143 billion (USD6.93 million) to local budgets annually.
Dr. Dao Trong Tu said he understood the significance of the projects in terms of ensuring national energy security, but pointed out the environmental impact caused.
According to Tu, the high density of hydropower projects along the Dong Nai River may have a negative impact on the environment, ecological system and livelihood of those living off the river. The projects could affect the sanctuary in the middle and the upstream areas while changing the river’s current.
Dr. Vu Ngoc Long, Deputy Director of the Institute of Tropical Biology, said Cat Tien National Park was home to a wealth of rare and precious species.
He was concerned that “the construction of Dong Nai 6 and Dong Nai 6A hydropower projects could create a negative impact on the extraordinarily biodiversity present in Cat Tien National Park, threatening the conservation efforts made by the park over many years.”
Pham Thi Cam Nhung, Co-ordinator of the World Wildlife Fund for Nature in the Greater Mekong Sub-region agreed that the plants would greatly affect the park’s ecological system. Noise from engines and explosives used in the construction would affect animal breeding and wildlife.
Waste and wastewater from the construction would pollute the environment for many types of aquatic creatures, she emphasised.
Do or don’t?
Dr. Dao Trong Tu said construction of any hydropower project would have an environmental impact. However, this didn’t mean that he was totally opposed to hydropower development. He just called for careful and accurate assessment of environmental impact of these projects.
Dr. Vu Ngoc Long said, “As a scientist, I do find it difficult and costly to deal with the negative environmental impact such projects can have. It could be infeasible to totally avoid all negative environmental impacts of these two projects.”
Dr. Le Anh Tuan, from Can Tho University’s Institute of Climate Change Research recommended the projects should be suspended. He listed three reasons, including possible shortcomings during their operation, low economic efficiency, and an incomplete and unpersuasive environmental impact assessment.
“As an environmental activist, if possible, I’d not support the construction of these hydropower plants. If the investor insisted on the construction, an independent consultancy group should be set up with members from different agencies. More efforts should also be made to conduct more careful environmental assessments and prepare effective solutions.”
At the end of July, Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung approved the national power development plan for the 2011-2020 period that included the Dong Nai 6 and Dong Nai 6A hydropower projects.

Dr. Vu Ngoc Long said the projects’ construction sites are living habitats for several rare species

Scientists carrying out environmental studies on the affect of the projects

“Economic area” turns into a ghost town

A project to build a new resettlement area in Thanh Hoa Province has remains half-complete and mostly abandoned after a decade, with nobody to take responsibility.

Houses abandoned for years

As planned, local government of the central province of Thanh Hoa would have carried out a project o build up a ‘new economic area’, composed of 25 households, in Yen Giang Commune, Yen Dinh District. However, the project is still only half finished after 10 years.
Currently, dozens of houses have deteriorated after having been being abandoned for several years. Even though it was designed as an economic area, it still hasn’t been equipped with electricity, water supply or a road system.
Abandoned houses
Only two of the houses in Yen Giang Commune economic area are inhibited. These families have lived in bad conditions right from beginning.
Ms. Hong, a resident in the area, said, “We moved to this area after we got married. At first, we were very happy because we thought we would live in the conditions promised by the local government when the project was finished. But nothing about it met our expectations. We’ve had to struggle. There is no electricity, no water and bad roads. But now, because of our financial situation, we have no choice but to stay here.”
The project, which began construction in 2000, was designed to provide accommodation for 25 young families with two to three children each. The idea was to have a low population density, while supporting underprivileged families at the same time.
Not according to plan
Families were selected, and each provided with a 200 square metre lot, along with some money to cover the construction of the house foundation and the drilling of a water well.
Initially, the project was welcomed by the people of Yen Giang Commune. Dozens of houses were built in the area and many young couples moved there with high expectations.
However, while these families were in the process of getting bank loans to build their new homes, the entire project became stagnant. None of the other basic amenities - electricity, water, roads - were ever delivered.
Luu Hong Lam, a resident of the area, shared, “At first, we were very happy. More than ten families were living in the area some years ago. However, with the lack of electricity and water, and and no roads most of them were forced to go back to their old houses. It’s been a decade, and this place is still half-completed.”
Mr. Ha, another local man, said, “We are struggling with a lack of electricity and water. But the government’s behavior has only added to our problems. We still haven’t even received money to drill a well.”
Shirking responsibility
When asked about the project, Nguyen Van Hao, Chairman of Yen Giang Communal People’s Committee, said, “I took the office after the project had already started, so I know nothing about the implementation process. I only know that just two out of 25 targeted families are living in the area due to the conditions there.”
Another official, Ngo Thi Hoa, Chairman of Yen Dinh District People’s Committee, said “I don’t know much about this project. I heard that many houses have been abandoned for years, and those still living there are facing a lot of difficulties.”
Do The Hanh, Deputy Director of the provincial Department of Agriculture and Rural Development explained, “Ten years ago, the project was to be carried out across Thanh Hoa Province. However, a short time later, funding for the project was cut off without informing the the people who were living there.”

Those who live there face a tough situation

Run-down houses